Board of Directors
The Kukes Family
After the tragic loss of their son Andy, Jeffrey Kukes and Patricia Kukes founded the Andrew Kukes Foundation for Social Anxiety (AKFSA). The Kukes family created AKFSA to raise awareness, offer education for professionals and provide support for sufferers, family and friends so that no other family would have to experience the terrible pain of losing a child to social anxiety. Jeffrey and Patricia are activists and ambassadors — shedding light on the severity of social anxiety and working to provide avenues for help and educational resources. Through AKFSA, the Kukes family has begun to create a much needed community for those affected by social anxiety.
Yong Kukes
Barbara Kratchman
Barbara Kratchman has a long history of involvement in Michigan’s civic and cultural arts communities. As a consultant, her clients include The Kresge Foundation, Inforum, Miller Canfield and Comerica. She founded ArtServe Michigan, the non-profit, statewide arts advocacy organization where she served as President and CEO for over a decade. She also served as Executive Director of the Michigan Council for the Arts following several years in the Michigan Department of Commerce. After retiring from the State of Michigan, Kratchman was VP of Non-Profit Services at the advertising agency, Stone, August, Baker. Kratchman presently serves on the boards of The Andrew Kukes Foundation for Social Anxiety, Michigan Opera Theatre, Michigan Council of Arts and Cultural Affairs, Detroit Public Television, DIA’s Friends of Modern and Contemporary Art and Board of Visitors for Wayne Sate University’s College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts. Kratchman was a founder of Michigan NonProfit Forum and has served on the boards of many organizations including Arts Midwest, Michigan Non-Profit Forum, Concerned Citizens for the Arts in Michigan, Business Volunteers for the Arts, Alma College, Jewish Community Council, Jewish Community Center, Lyric Chamber Ensemble, Birmingham-Bloomfield Arts Association and Michigan Women’s Foundation.